(CNN) - If you are a software engineer, an actuary, or a human resources manager, you hold one of the most popular jobs in the U.S. A CareerCast survey ranked 200 jobs from best to worst, using factors like work environment, stress, and physical demands.

But, what about one of those jobs much lower on the list, like "roofer?" It comes in at number 176 in the survey.

Kurt Carlson (not pictured above) has been in that profession for nearly two decades. The 41-year-old Atlantan says, for him, there's plenty to like:

[1:18] "Being outdoors and not being in an office or at the same location all the time. It's really nice to start and complete a job in just a few days and go on and work in some completely different area." FULL POST

Editor's note: CNN Contributor Bob Greene is a best-selling author whose 25 books include "Late Edition: A Love Story" and the novel "All Summer Long." He appears on "CNN Newsroom" Sundays during the 5 p.m. ET hour. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Bob Greene.

(CNN) – CNN Contributor Bob Greene looks past the conventions to the mudslinging about to get underway in earnest. He says that this could be the dirtiest political season in memory.

[1:01] "With politics having become more of a spectator sport than ever, what is the real harm in its having devolved into an only slightly more refined version of mud wrestling? The harm is that it’s a tough shift to go from mud wrestler to statesman once the votes are counted."

[2:22] "A willingness to use any means to win an election will inevitably in the end produce a president. But then the president will have to lead a nation that has turned darkly cynical about the entire process."